WebProNews

Orbitz Launches New Hotel Price Display

Online travel company Orbitz announced Wednesday that it will change the way it displays hotel pricing on its Web site. Orbitz has introduced "Total Price" hotel search results which now show base rate, taxes & fees per night upfront on the initial search results page.

EU Says Online Travel Sites Misleading

A third of European consumers are being misled or ripped off by Web sites selling airline tickets, according to EU Consumer Commissioner Meglena Kuneva."It is unacceptable that one in three consumers going to book a plane ticket online is being ripped off or misled and confused," Kuneva told a news conference.

Online Cruise Buyers Want Offline Help

Online travel companies say that potential travelers looking to book a cruise are more comfortable talking to human sales people than just purchasing costly trips on the Internet.

Search Engines Role In Travel Purchases

Twenty million people in the UK used search engines for travel information in the first quarter of 2007, according to a new study from Google U.K. and comScore.Users on average make 12 travel related searches, visit 22 Web sites and take 29 days from the first time they search until they make a purchase. Forty-five percent of transactions happen four weeks or more after the first search. Time spent online is lengthy allowing advertisers to reach and influence users as they search for information.

Online Travel Purchases Increasing

The Internet has become a travel distribution channel with 70 percent of online leisure travelers booking some of their personal travel online and 52 percent purchasing all or most of their travel online according to a new report from JupiterResearch, "US Travel Consumer Survey 2007."

European Online Travel Outpaces U.S.

Online travel reservations in Europe grew 30 percent in 2006, according to analysts in a July 9, 2007 New York Times Article. Compared to European online travel growth, U.S. online travel has hit a plateau.

American Travelers Make Plans Online

American travelers are taking a series of smaller vacations and are buying more travel products and services on the Internet, according to "The PhoCusWright Consumer Travel Trends Survey Ninth Edition" released this week. "American Travelers Make Plans Online"

Gay Community Embraces Online Travel

Gays and lesbians are more likely than heterosexuals to make travel arrangements online, according to a new poll by Harris Interactive. What's more, the gay community is several times more likely to cite fair treatment in their top three most important considerations for choosing hotels.